FEATURED BY RELIGION NEWS SERVICE

KANSAS CITY, MO – Atheists and Christians are coming together to raise funds for the Drumm Farm Center for Children, a Kansas City-based foster and adoptive care resource center.

The Kansas City Atheist Coalition (KCAC) and members of Abundant Life, a church in Lee’s Summit, will compete in a friendly volleyball tournament. The games will involve six teams of six players each, ending with an all-star atheist vs. an all-star Christian playoff.

The tournament will begin at 3 p.m. Saturday, June 22, at Abundant Life, 414 Persels Road in Lee’s Summit. Admission is $5. All proceeds will go to Drumm Farm.

“Ed Croteau of Abundant Life invited members of the Kansas City Atheist Coalition to a skeptics' Q&A at the church earlier this year,” said Sarah Hargreaves, president of KCAC. “Those who attended enjoyed fiery but respectful conversation. Since then, members of both our groups have remained in contact primarily via a Facebook group devoted to discussing issues of faith, Christianity and religion in general.”

“While members of the group remain deeply divided on many philosophical and theological issues, people genuinely seem to like each other," said Croteau. "The mood of the group goes from very heavy to very light in a matter of minutes sometimes.”

Hargreaves said the idea of a Christian vs. atheist volleyball tournament “was originally presented as a joke, I think. But it immediately gained traction in the group, so Ed and I started putting plans together and decided to include a fundraiser for a worthy cause. Someone in the group suggested Drumm Farm, and everyone agreed it was a great choice.”

“I think this is a great opportunity for people to see atheists and Christians coming together to do good in our community," Croteau said. "I think the tournament will also be a lot of fun. We are all anxious to see who will have bragging rights in the Facebook group.”

The Drumm Farm Center for Children provides a stable, nurturing environment for children in foster care and helps keep siblings together in times of family transition. It also offers programs and services to help children and families overcome emotional, physical, financial, educational, housing and life challenges.

For more information about the volleyball tournament, contact Kansas City Atheist Coalition President Sarah Hargreaves at 816-726-2577 or contact@kcatheists.org, or Abundant Life member Ed Croteau at 816-394-8816 or eacroteau@gmail.com. Visit the groups’ websites at kcatheists.org and abundantlifewired.com.

The Kansas City Atheist Coalition is a 501(c)3 nonprofit charitable organization. Its mission is to advance atheism through activism, philanthropy, education and the cultivation of a positive secular community.

Abundant Life has been serving the Lee’s Summit area for more than 10 years. Its mission is to “bring living proof of a loving God to a watching world.” Activities include a food pantry, free annual kids carnival and support of feeding centers and missions in more than 70 countries. Learn more at www.abundantlifewired.com.

Ed Croteau also writes and speaks frequently about matters of faith and reason and maintains a Facebook site: “Faith: Substance and Evidence.” He can be reached with comments through the Facebook site.